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Advice following road collision

Hi,
I'm after some advice following a road collision a couple of weeks ago. Basically a car pulled across me, I went into his windscreen etc etc.
The driver basically admitted to it being his fault.
I have a solicitor on the case presently.
My question regards my bike. My friend had a look at it and said he couldn't see any obvious damage to the frame/fork/bars etc but that the front wheel was a little bit out of true.
I have read that if I carbon bike is in any sort of head on collision with a vehicle etc more than likely the bike will be written off as there me be unseen damage to the carbon weave which may fail later.
Tbh I'd rather it wasn't written off as it's a lovely bike and I have ploughed some money into it but obviously don't want that to cause me to have an accident later if it does fail.
Has anyone had any experience into how to get a bike checked to make sure it's safe so I can inform the solicitors. I am aware you can have the bike X rayed but seeing as that costs over a grand I'd rather not.
any help appreciated
Thanks

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9 comments

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Bazmonkey77 | 5 years ago
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Thanks. I got solicitor involved as I police advised me to as I suffered a broken shoulder and injuries to my arm and am of work for several months so I am claiming for injuries, lost pay etc etc. All I have heard is from solicitor that other party will pay for my physio etc etc but to keep a note of all damage to equipment and cost of equipment, so they can pass on, but as mentioned in my 1st post I wasn't sure where to take bike to be looked at other than few LBS who said bike will probably have to be written off or it will need to be sent to Cube so they can X ray the frame and check fully, which as mentioned was told would cost a small fortune.

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vonhelmet | 5 years ago
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I got hit yesterday. Driver has admitted fault so their insurer called me and told me to provide a total loss confirmation from a bike shop along with photos and details of a suitable replacement bike, accessories etc so they can confirm what they owe me.

Have you heard anything from the insurer yet? If the driver has admitted fault then there’s no reason you shouldn’t get your bike replaced. Deal with their insurer first. You should only need a solicitor if the driver starts denying responsibility and it looks like you’ll struggle to claim agaimst then.

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zero_trooper | 5 years ago
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Good advice from Fenix.

If it's not too late I would sack off your solicitor and get a specialist. As pointed out, it's the frame that you are probably replacing and just transfer the bits across. Ideally the other party should pay a bike mechanic to do it.

My only concern is that the driver 'basically' admitted liability. He either did, or he didn't. (I was recently in an accident where I was sat in a stationary car and a guy reversed out of a parking bay into the side of me. Clear cut. However, he reported to his insurance company that we had both been reversing into the same parking bay and collided. It got sorted thanks to my photos from the scene).

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Bazmonkey77 | 5 years ago
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Thanks for the replies so far. Sorry fenix if I appear amateurish, never had the displeasure of being hit before. Maybe I should have been clearer initially, I live in Lincoln and my bike is at my work in London. So a friend who just happens to be a cycle mechanic popped round to my work to see if there was any obvious damage which he couldn't really see without dismantling the bike.
The reason I was unsure was when I asked my solicitor what I needed to do with the bike they weren't sure. Do I pay for the bike to be looked at, do the solicitors, does the other parties insurance.
Hence the question

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fenix | 5 years ago
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Why are you being so amateurish about the collision ?

 

If it was a car crash you'd take it to the repairers - not let a mate have a look. The insurers will want a 3rd party report surely ?

 

And what about your injuries. Have you seen a doctor ? Photographed everything ? Documented torn clothing ?

 

It's your bike - you can take kit off it if you want to - but you want to be very sure that the frame isn't going to snap on you. 

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nniff | 5 years ago
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Give these guys a call; see what they have to say an dtake it from there.

 

https://carbonbikerepair.co.uk/

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squired | 5 years ago
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I had to deal with a similar issue recently (August) after my brother was involved in a nasty accident that resulted in a displaced spinal fracture.  The bike shop explained that in the past they would just write the frames off, but that now there are specialist places that can repair frames after crashes.  Thus for my brother's bike they quoted for the frame repair rather than a full replacement.  As part of this the mechanic had quite a long conversation with the people at the repair company to check that it could indeed be repaired (no cracks or signs of major damage by the way).

So my first suggestion would be to get it to your bike shop.  Your solicitor (and the driver's insurance) will be after a quote or two from bike shops anyway.

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LastBoyScout | 5 years ago
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Carbon frames are pretty strong, but I still think I'd want the peace of mind of having a new one after a head-on crash.

Having said that, I'm still rolling around on a carbon frame that I crashed into an invisible barrier (painted dark green and against a tarmac background) and went over the handlebars. I can't be the only one that's done it, as it's now covered in reflectors and day-glo orange tape! I hit it at handlebar height, not going very fast, and the brake levers took the brunt of it and twisted on the bars. I've replaced the bars since, but that's it.

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StraelGuy | 5 years ago
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The general consensus on here is that most bike shops will automatically right off any carbon bike that's been in a crash purely from a 'what if' perspective.

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